The World on a String
by Elizalovesfringe
Summary: Set after 5.05 An Origin Story, and what happens next. Polivia, with mild spoilers for that episode. Peter and Olivia figure out what to do next after an incident. There will be Polivia fluff:)
1. Chapter 1

**A/N Hi! I'm Lizzie, and this is my first fringe fanfic that I'm posting up here, so do play nice?:) comments and advice are extremely welcome, so do hit that blue comment there please? Oh and a mild Spoiler Alert for those who have not watched season 5 yet.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Fringe. At all.**

_"You know what, maybe you should just go!" Peter hollered, flinging his phone onto the sofa. Olivia bit back tears._

_"Maybe I will!" She retorted, then flounced up the stairs to the bedroom that they shared, slamming the door so hard that the windows rattled. She began to pull clothes out of the closet, and stuff them into a black duffel bag. A small cardboard box sitting in a corner of the closet caught her attention._

_She pulled it out from, and opened its cover. Olivia fished out a small matchbox, and carefully slid it open, a dented bullet on a silver chain nestled in it. She pulled it up by its chain, smiling as she looked at it, then lowered it back into the matchbox, and placed it into the box again. She didn't bother taking her sidearm with her, it would be a hassle to bring around, and if she got caught by the Observers, she didn't want them to get her gun too._

_Olivia pushed the cardboard box into the closet again, and zipped her duffel bag shut. She left the room, and descended the stairs. Peter was nowhere to be seen, which was fine with her, she really wasn't in the mood to see him anyway. But still, she had expected him to see her off._

_"Oh, Peter." She sighed, taking one long, lasting look at the house, before she stepped out into the garage._

Olivia's eyes flew open, as the door to the office swung open. Peter smiled at her, a little quizzically, and she realized that she was still on the floor. She smiled back, as he joined her on the floor.

"You okay?" He asked her, brushing tears away from her eyes. "You were crying earlier. While you slept."

"I'm fine." She replied. "Just a dream." Peter nodded to the tv.

"Watching something?" Olivia sighed heavily.

"It's one of Walter's tapes." Peter raised an eyebrow.

"I thought we wouldn't have another one till Thursday?" He asked. Olivia averted her eyes to the floor.

"It's one of Etta's birthday tapes that Walter took." She replied quietly. Peter looked down too.

"Oh." Another tear rolled down her cheek.

"I miss her, Peter." She whispered. "I want her back." Peter pulled her into a hug, and he could feel her ribcage rise and fall as she took in gulps of air.

"I know. I miss her too." He said. All was silent, with the occasional scraping of a chair from the lab, and soon, Olivia fell asleep again.

Astrid opened the door to the office just a crack, peering in to see if Olivia was inside. She smiled. Olivia and Peter were asleep on the floor, in front of the tv. Olivia was wrapped in Peter's arms, and his head rested gently on hers.

She closed the door with a small click, still smiling. The two had been through a lot lately, and they probably needed the rest, having been working continually. And anyway, they needed the time to let their relationship go back to normal again. The way it was meant to be. Together.

**A/N and that's the end of the first chapter:) okay, it may be a little short.. And I will probably continue this, especially if someone likes this:) please review!:D**


	2. A stern realization

**A/N Hi, I'm back!:) okay, so from now on, I'm making all of this up, because I don't know what will happen on the show next. So..here goes:D Oh, and for those who haven't watched 5x05, extremely EXTREMELY mild spoiler warning.**

**-Lizzie~**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Fringe in any way. **

Peter was feeling horrible. His neck seemed to be buzzing, and his mind felt as though it had taken a few cycles in a washer and dryer. He staggered out of the office, yawning. Astrid was seated at a desk, monitoring a few computer screens. She looked up at him, and smiled. Peter returned it, but his cheek muscles wouldn't let him pull a wide one.

"Hey Peter, you feeling alright?" She asked. Peter nodded.

"Yeah. All those hours of being awake must've finally taken a toll on me, I guess." He replied. Astrid chuckled.

"I'm glad you realize that." She said, then nodded towards the office. "How's Olivia?" Peter looked towards the office, then back at Astrid again.

"Holding up, for now. I think she finally broke, when she watched the tape Walter gave her." He confessed. "But she's sleeping now, so perhaps she'll feel better when she wakes up." Thoughts were churning in Peter's mind, which added to his horrible feeling.

_What am I doing? Olivia needs me._

_I've failed to protect one of my girls, am I going to lose another one?_

_What's happening to me?_ Then another thought struck him, and his heart wrenched in horror at what he had done.

_What have I done? I can't lose Olivia again._ He thought about it. The Observer tech he had implanted in him undoubtedly needed time to take root in his brain. Perhaps there was still time to get it out. He couldn't ask Walter or Astrid to get it out, much less Olivia. He had to get someone else. He entered an empty room, and pulled out his cell phone.

"Anil, it's Peter. There's something I need your help with."

•Fringe•Fringe•Fringe•Fringe•

"You did _what_?" Anil asked in horror. Peter looked at him guiltily.

"I put the Observer tech in my neck. You know, the one from that Observer you caught." He said. "And I need your help getting it out."

"Of all the dumb, _stupid_ things anyone could do.." Anil murmured angrily. "You do realize that you could die, right? I'll have to cut your neck open to get it out." Peter nodded.

"I know, but it's better than not trying." Anil sighed heavily, resigned to the fact that he was helping Peter.

"I'll try my best. And if you don't make it, what should I do?"

"Call Olivia, and tell her what happened. Give her all my belongings." Peter eyed him. "Do not take anything." Anil nodded.

"Aye aye, Captain." He said morosely, attaching Peter to a drip. Anil pulled out a syringe, and a bottle of clear liquid. He filled the syringe, and inserted it into the tube, pressing the plunger in. He glanced at Peter nervously. "If things don't turn out right, I just want you to know that it's been an honor knowing you."

"It will turn out right." Peter reassured him, already groggy from the anesthesia. It was only a few seconds before he was out cold, and Anil picked up a scalpel, poising it over Peter's neck. He put it down again, pulling his cellphone out of his pocket, and brought Olivia's number up on the screen, then made the first incision.

"Shit." Anil groaned, as Peter's body spasmed on the table. "Shit shit shit." He put the tech onto a Petri dish, and reached for another syringe. But a long silence made him stop. He rushed back to the table, and searched for a pulse. "Damn." He whispered. He ripped off his gloves, and picked up his cell phone.

"Hey Anil, what's up?" Olivia's voice said smoothly over the speaker. Anil shot a look at Peter lying on the table, dead.

"Um, there's something that you need to see, right now." He said, biting his lower lip. "Just come alone." In the lab, Olivia's grip tightened on her phone.

"Okay, I'll be there." She hung up, frowning. Something was wrong. She knew it.

**A/N *cue ominous music* okay, not to offend anyone who loves Peter, which includes me, but seriously, what in the world was Peter thinking when he put that thing in his neck?! Anyway, that aside..please review!:)**


	3. Hope

**A/N Weeellll, I had some time on my hands, so I decided to continue this story:) this is completely AU now, by the way. Oh, and thanks so much to those who reviewed! You guys are the best! Here's a hug for you: *hug!*:D**

**-Lizzie~**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Fringe. I don't wanna get sued:P**

Anil didn't know how to break it to her. His mind ran through dozens, hell, _hundreds_ of ways that he could tell Olivia that her husband was dead. But he just couldn't think of a way to do it. As far as she was concerned, he had just killed her husband, and she had just lost her daughter too, a few days ago. The timing couldn't have been any worse.

It had been what, 8 minutes ago since he had called Olivia, and she would be on her way already. He was feeling extremely uneasy, and being in the same room with a dead body, of someone he knew, was unnerving, to say the least. His eyes wandered to the tech, still in the Petri dish. It was tempting, to try it, but apparently Peter had realized that it was a mistake, and would even die trying to remove it. So there it stayed, on the Petri dish.

There was a sharp knock on the door, and he jumped. Well, Olivia had been quick. He rose, to answer the door, stopping to check the peephole, and unlock the several locks on the door. He swung the door open, and ushered Olivia in hurriedly, hastily checking to see if there were any Observers around. She entered, and he shut the door.

"Well, what's going on?" Olivia asked, smiling. Anil could tell that her smile was forced, and that the joviality in her voice was sparked with sadness and grief. He felt more uneasy.

"Um, there's something you, uh, need to know." He stuttered. Olivia's features tensed, as he thought through what he was going to say next. "When the Observer was captured, uh, Peter, well, _questioned_ him to find out the workings of the cube." He looked at Olivia. She seemed to be taking it rather well, surprisingly. "After-after Peter had finished questioning him, he found no more use for the Observer, and killed him."

"What?" Olivia asked, in disbelief, tears beginning to well up in her eyes. But she swallowed, hard, and blinked the tears away. "He killed an Observer?" Her voice softened to a whisper.

"Yes, but that isn't the end." Olivia was about to say something, but he raised his two hands to stop her. "Hold on, let me continue. There was this piece of _tech_, implanted in the Observer's neck, which we presumed was a sort of mind enhancer, gave the Observers their so-called 'powers'. Peter cut open the Observer's neck, and removed this piece of tech." Olivia's jaw clenched.

"Don't tell me he implanted it in himself." Olivia knew Peter well. He could do _anything_ when he was in a rage, or in their case, grieving. But he would never take it out on her, or Etta, but on other things, including himself. Anil's guilty expression told her all she needed to know. "Where is he now, Anil?"

"Hold on, again. He realized that he was wrong for doing that, that by implanting it in himself, the tech would change him for the worse, and that he couldn't make you suffer anymore, so he asked me to help him remove it. I didn't want to, knowing all the consequences there might be, but he presented a good argument, so I helped him." His gaze dropped to the floor. "But unfortunately the damage was already done, and," he stole a look at Olivia, whose eyes were red with tears. "He didn't make it," his voice dropped to a whisper. "I'm sorry."

Olivia felt as though her world came crashing down on her again, as Anil told her what Peter had been up to, and felt a horrible sense of dread. As he made his way to telling her that the damage had already been done, she knew what had happened. Suddenly, the loss of her husband, right after the death of their daughter hit her, and she broke completely, and felt as though a black hole had swallowed her up.

She burst into tears.

Not those longing tears that she had shed while watching Etta's birthday video, or when she had cried to Peter when they had reached what had become home, she sobbed, heartbroken. First Etta, now Peter. A phrase she had cried came rushing back into her mind: _Why did I get them back just to lose them again? _She cried harder, knowing that she would never have him or their daughter back again.

Anil was at a loss. He had expected Olivia to cry, grieve, but not the way she had. It had been as though she had died alongside Peter, in the midst of all those tears, and he didn't know how to react. Crying women who had just lost their daughter and husband were not his area of expertise. As he wondered how to show her Peter's belongings, as well as his body, she stopped crying , and sniffed, rubbing her eyes.

"Where is he now?" She whispered hoarsely, bloodshot eyes peering at him. He silently brought her over to Peter, lying on the table. He had stitched up the incision he had made, and pulled a cloth over him. Olivia slowly pulled it back, then she choked a gasp, and the tears came on again.

"I'll give you some time." Anil murmured, and retreated out of sight. Olivia noticed a sort of necklace peeking out from his jacket pocket nearby, and pulled it out gently. Their wedding ring was attached to it. At the sight, her heart seemed to have dissolved, and she burst into tears again. She gripped his hand, squeezing it, as tears rolled off her cheek, and onto his cold, bare chest.

Olivia hung onto his hand, as those hanging on for dear life, crying out about why he had done what he had done, why he had to leave her, how she was going to live without him, among other things. The bright spotlights circling the 'surgery table' dimmed, flickered and switched off completely. Olivia's head perked up, from its initial spot on Peter's hand, and for some unknown reason, felt a spark of hope ignite in her.

**Okay, I just had to leave you a little cliffie there. For those of you who have watched 5x06, you will know that this is definitely not how the show continued from 5x05. I hope you liked this chapter, or even enjoyed it, and as always, do review!:) feedback and thoughts are welcome too:D And with that, I'll see you in the next chapter.**


	4. For Etta

**A/N Oh, seems like we've been seeing a lot of Anil, huh? I think he's gonna stay for a little while longer. Anyway, I had a tight schedule so this took some time for me to upload, so really sorry to all those who were waiting for this chapter! You guys are great!:)**

**-Lizzie~**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Fringe. No copyright inFRINGEment is intended.**

The lights dimmed, although it would have been more accurate to say that every electronic device seemed to have stopped working at the same time. Anil slapped his palm against his computer monitor, muttering a curse angrily. Left in total darkness, he searched for a flashlight, when the lights flickered back on again, and there was a loud crash, a clatter of metal against concrete.

_Damn it. Olivia._ He thought, realizing for the first time that the crying had stopped. He ran, towards the 'operating theatre', and paused, searching for the blonde. A sight made his breath catch in his throat. Something, which looked like..he shook his head. Definitely not, Peter was dead. And where was Olivia? A peek of blonde could be seen from behind the table, a black leather clad arm lying limply on the floor. He panicked.

"Oh no." He murmured, ignoring whatever was going on on the 'surgery table', and sat Olivia upright. He searched for a pulse, and almost groaned. Etta was right, much as her parents were loving, to each other, really, they had a funny way of showing it. "Oh my, geez. I'm glad I'm not your father." He groaned.

"You should be. She killed her father." Peter grunted, still lying on the table, chest heaving. Anil glanced up at the table, his eyes rolled back, and he passed out. Peter took in gulps of air, rolling his eyes around in his sockets over and over. "Olivia." He managed, before naturally drifting off to sleep.

Olivia came round, eyes darting around the room, wondering where she was. For a moment, she panicked, then remembered where she was, and calmed down, for a moment anyway, before she remembered why she was there. Then her heart plunged into her stomach again, as she remembered that Peter was gone. Anil was out cold on the floor next to her, and after checking for a pulse, she knew that he was just unconscious, not dead.

She stood up, and took a step forward, then stopped. She pivoted, and looked around the room. Olivia frowned, at the empty metal table.

"Peter?" She whispered. "Peter?" She repeated a little louder. She looked around, searching as she would have as an FBI agent, twenty years in the past. A thorough search of the place revealed that the toilet door was locked, and she knocked. "Peter?" She called. There was a shuffle, and the door was wrenched open, and Peter looked at her, clear blue eyes peering at her, even though he was hunched over, as though he was very tired.

"Yes, hun?" Olivia launched herself onto him, hugging him tightly. Peter took a step back, as she hugged him, and embraced her too, feeling her tears drop onto his shirt.

"Oh my god, don't do that to me _ever_ again." She cried, as he pushed his nose into her blonde hair. "I love you so much, Peter." Peter ran his hand through her hair.

"I love you too." He replied, kissing her on the lips, foreheads touching. There was a clang, and they broke lip contact. Anil entered the room, rubbing his eyes groggily.

"Oh it's just you. I thought the Observers had found this place." He said, then paused. "Um, and was it me, or did Peter-" he pulled his hand away from his eyes, and peered at the pair. His face paled, as he spotted Olivia, in Peter's embrace. His eyes widened, and fell backwards. Peter caught him.

"Whoops." He said casually, putting him gently on the chair. "I guess I owe him a set of psych sessions." Olivia laughed, and gave him another big hug, as though he would disappear again if she let go of him.

"Yes, you do." She said, before adding, "I thought that you had left me for good. When Etta died, I just couldn't lose you too." Tears sparked in her eyes again. He kissed her forehead gently, fondling her hair, ruffling it.

"I will never leave you again." He said, before pausing, and continued. "We can still make this work." Olivia smiled.

"Us?"

"Us." Peter replied, nodding. Olivia leaned her head on Peter's chest, hair rustling against his shirt. Peter kissed her on the top of the head, arms around her waist. "We can make it work."

"We will. For Etta." Olivia whispered. Peter smiled, eyes closed, the first time he had smiled for some time.

"For Etta."

**A/N hello! I hope you enjoyed this chapter:) I did enjoy writing it. I've really missed all the Polivia scenes SO much, so I just HAD to do this, even if it's just a teeny weeny portion. And in case anyone hasn't really noticed, I'm a hardcore Polivia shipper, so you should expect more Polivia fluff in the near future:) and please review, I also welcome thoughts and feedback!:)))**

**Till the next chapter,  
Lizzie:) **


	5. Unicorns?

**A/N *cue drumroll* I'm baaaacckk! (After a pretty long time. Sorry 'bout that. Tests and what not.) Hope you guys are enjoying the story so far. And I apologise if anyone was a fan of Anil, because to you, making him faint twice in the same chapter would seem extremely cruel to you, but I assure you I meant him no harm. So..on with the chapter!:)**

**-Lizzie~**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Fringe, blah blah copyright stuff, blah. I think we all get it by now :P **

Anil roused, feeling, well, extremely creeped out. He groaned, head throbbing. Olivia appeared in the doorway, with a smile.

"Feeling better?" She enquired. "You were out cold for quite a while."

"Ugh, I'm fine." He murmured. Peter appeared in the doorway, and he paled again. "Will someone explain something to me?" Olivia nodded.

"Shoot." Anil pointed at Peter.

"Why is he alive?" Peter chuckled. Anil's eyes narrowed. "Or am I hallucinating?"

"I'm not in any way part of your imagination." Peter reassured him. "That would be creepy. The answer to your question would seem even creepier, because it involves a lot of crazy things we did back in 2008 onwards, and if we were still in 2014 or something, I assure you that it's classified. _But_ since you helped me, I'll just say..." He paused, then pointed at Olivia. "She's magical." Anil did a double take.

"She's a-a fairy?" He said in disbelief.

"Really?" Olivia said simultaneously. "Magical? That was the _only_ word you could have used." Peter shrugged.

"It was either that or unicorn." He said innocently, then turned back to Anil. "In short, let's just say that there were..some experiments done on her." Olivia mouthed 'unicorn?', then nodded.

"Experiments." Anil leaned back in his chair. "And I'm not magical. Just.. Special."

"Classified. Experiments. Special. Unicorn. Okay." He said, understanding.

"No unicorn!" Olivia huffed exasperatedly. "What's with the unicorn, anyway?" She remarked. Peter shrugged.

"No idea. And speaking of unicorns-"

"No unicorns!" Olivia interrupted. Peter's gaze shifted, and she looked away too. "Sorry. You know, Etta was all over unicorns when you bought her-"

"Brandy for her second birthday." Peter said softly. "I know. She still has-had it, when I packed all her things away, after she... Somehow she got it back." Olivia smiled.

"She's stubborn... _was_ stubborn. She does stuff to get what she wants." Anil suddenly felt extremely awkward hearing this exchange, even as Etta's friend. He snuck out, leaving the other two to reminisce. Peter smiled at Olivia.

"Just like you." Olivia rolled her eyes good naturedly.

"Look who's talking." She said. "I had to 'rescue' you from Iraq, and you didn't even _want_ to be rescued."

"Technically, I was doing business." Peter added.

"And _then_, I had to threaten your personal health before you actually gave in." Olivia finished. "That's stubborn too."

"I was stubborn only _because_ you were trying to drag me back into a life that I didn't want. To a mental institution. To see my deranged father that I hadn't seen for ages. Well, if, say, you had asked me to go to a bar-"

"Peter!" Olivia gasped, horrified.

"I would have agreed straight away." Peter continued nonchalantly. "Oh, and were you serious when you said that you would shoot me if I called you 'sweetheart' again?" Olivia looked at him solemnly, trying not to crack a smile at the memory.

"Dead serious."

"Well, sweetheart, let me try that again." Olivia smiled.

"I don't think I'll like to hear the word 'sweetheart' in every sentence you say to me." She noted. "I would probably still shoot you." When Peter laughed, she added:"I'm serious! Don't make me try."

"When all this is over, I just might. Oh hey, remember at the fitting before the wedding, and Walter wanted me to wear his purple tux, and I said-"

"Hell no! And then I started laughing so hard that I actually cried?" Olivia said, laughing at the memory. "Of course! And when you made me 'model' all those gowns, and I was just about to strangle you when you finally liked one of them?"

"And you looked _beautiful_ in it. Absolutely gorgeous." He said. "I _loved_ that dress." His smile was hung across his face from ear to ear. Olivia's smile mirrored his.

"I know you did." She fished a wallet out from her jeans pocket, and pulled out a small photo. The photo was them, at their wedding, Olivia and Peter were holding hands, talking to the guests, who were their friends. "Rachel took it." She explained.

"She _was_ going around with that camera.." Peter said. "Gosh, that was one of the _best_ days of my life." Olivia spied a golden wedding band in her wallet as she replaced the photo. In front of her, Peter was fingering a necklace, which she knew had their wedding ring on it.

"Mine too." She said dreamily, mind drifting off into a beautiful past...

**A/N keeping myself happy with all this Polivia fluff and fantasies:) I really hope that you like it! Do review, about the story so far, or even if you want to fangirl/fanboy, or anything! **

**Spoiler alert:All you Polivia lovers, I think you will really like the next chapter!:)**

**-Lizzie~**

** please review!**


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